Submit QuestBridge rankings and Match Agreement

QuestBridge rankings and Match Agreement

Deadline: October 15, 2026, 11:59pm Pacific.

What you are deciding

You may rank up to 15 partner colleges. If a college matches you, you are committed: you attend, and every other application you have filed is withdrawn. This is more binding than Early Decision, because it happens without you seeing the offer first.

How ranking actually works

The match runs in your stated preference order. You are matched to the highest-ranked college that selects you, and matching stops there. Ranking a school lower does not hurt your chances at it — but it does mean that if a school you ranked above also selects you, you go to the higher one.

So the order should be genuine preference, not strategy.

The rule to apply to every college on the list

Ask: if this were the only acceptance we received, and we could not see the financial offer in advance, would we be glad? If the answer is anything short of yes, do not rank it. Rank five schools you want over fifteen you are unsure about.

Finalist notification: October 21

If you become a Finalist, each ranked college needs its own Match requirements by November 1 — usually its supplemental essays and sometimes an additional form. That is a nine-day turnaround on top of the Early Action and Early Decision applications already due that day. Draft those supplements now, before Finalist decisions come out, because there is no time to start them afterwards.

If you rank nothing

You can be a Finalist without ranking any colleges, and then apply to the same schools through the regular process. Finalist status still carries weight, and several partner colleges waive their application fee for Finalists.